Italian media: 'Even the most optimistic are forced to give up hope'

Italian branch of Sky Sport

Leo Turrini's rating cards award both Red Bull drivers with a 10. "He does his job and finishes first," he commented on Perez. While on Verstappen, he said: "Maybe next time we'll let him start from outside the racetrack, seeing that he almost won from the eighth row..." Far less praise for Ferrari and their drivers, who get a six and the same comment: "He struggles too. But against his car, horrendous."

For Ferrari, it was a very bad Sunday. But for the Italian journalists, it is not all to be thrown away: "There are some good things that Ferrari bring back to Maranello from Jeddah: very fast pit stops and then the excellent strategy that allowed at one point in the GP to keep both drivers ahead of Stroll". However, the Sky commentator acknowledges that for Ferrari it is "a very complicated situation" and former driver Ivan Capelli agrees with him: "the gap is worrying".

La Gazzetta dello Sport

"Verstappen and Perez are running away with another championship and is already reminiscent of the McLaren in 1988". That's the verdict of Gianluca Gasparini in La Gazzetta dello Sport. "At the first GP of the year, in Bahrain, Red Bull had provided a frightening demonstration of strength, to the point of making many say that the game was over before it had even begun," Gasparini continued. "Yesterday, even the most optimistic (and imaginative...) of those who hoped for a season that was at least a little bit hard-fought were forced to give up: Verstappen and Perez are running away with the championship."

Luigi Perna, on the other hand, sings the praises of Fernando Alonso, "protagonist of a lion's share of the race with the Aston Martin, in spite of his 41 years of age," and comments on the negative Sunday of the Ferraris: "Recriminating is useless in the light of the second half of the race, which saw the reds sink. The car was very slow on hard tyres. Same trouble as in Bahrain".

In his report, Perna is harsher than Turrini, giving 9 to Perez and 8.5 to Max Verstappen. Leclerc, on the other hand, deserves a 6.5, as he was "formidable in recovering from 12th place at the start of the GP". Sainz doesn't get the same praise.

Corriere della Sera

"Depressing Ferrari," said Flavio Vanetti who works for the Corriere della Sera. At the same time, he sees a dominant Red Bull, for whom "the only problem could be the rivalry between the two drivers." In the Corriere's report, the grade for Ferrari is 5: "At the moment, the Red Bull are the third/fourth force in the World Championship, in spite of the trumpet blasts and proclamations on the eve of the World Championship. The SF-23 seems, trivially, not to have enough: it will need shock therapy like the one they are planning at Mercedes. At Jeddah, the pit stops worked well, but the result is depressing."

Again, the two Red Bull drivers both deserve 10s, with Perez "no longer willing to be the boss' doormat" and Verstappen "reminding us that he is in charge". And Alonso also deserves another round of applause: "A warrior and more on the ball than ever, the author of another wonderful race and, above all, serene and confident in the means of this regenerated Aston Martin."

La Repubblica

"Ferrari back and in trouble." said the headline in La Repubblica. "Bad, decidedly bad for Ferrari, which never expected such a bad start to the season. In Saudi Arabia as in Bahrain, just to explain to everyone what the hierarchies of Formula One 2023 are." In the ratings, Ferrari get 4.

La Repubblica doesn't find any positive side to Ferrari's weekend: "The Reds reduced to fourth in the World Championship after a colourless race in Saudi Arabia", while Max Verstappen's fastest lap is commented as follows: "in his usual fashion, he shoots off a qualifying time on the last lap, wins that one point and thus the World Championship lead".

Autosprint

Autosprint focuses particularly on Alonso. "The Alonso of Jeddah sends a different and destabilising message high into the sky, along with the fireworks. The Spaniard has, in his hands, a car to travel to the podium, presumably, for the whole year."

Matteo Novembrini, on the other hand, underlines Red Bull's dominance: "The RB19, at the moment, is in a league of its own. It will perhaps be there for the whole year if Mercedes and Ferrari do not wake up, and if Aston Martin does not make a masterpiece in developments after having already made a big step in the winter. So, Checo and Max meanwhile will be sharing victories with no real antagonist other than their sister car."